Learn to Be Lonely
by KayleighBough
Summary: To House, cases were just another challenge. But things become deadly serious when its Cameron on the table. HCam.[set after 'Heavy']
1. Chapter 1

"Clear!"

The doctor slammed the paddles into the patients' chest. The woman shuddered and convulsed as electricity surged through her body. The doctor glanced up as a blip appeared on the heart rate monitor, then flat lined.  
"Again." said the Nurse anxiously. The doctor nodded resolutely, rubbing the paddles together.

"Idiot." muttered House under his breath.

"What?"

His eyes flicked over to Cuddy, who was standing in the doorway. She was looking very annoyed indeed. Apparently oblivious to her rage, House nodded towards the TV screen. The Doctor on the show shocked the woman again.

"He hasn't even plugged them in. See? You can see the plug dangling at the end. Plus he's rubbing too hard. Looks like he's trying to start a car engine."

Cuddy's cheek twitched.

Bad sign. House sighed inwardly and grasped his cane, heaving himself to his feet. He'd discovered that it was better to be walking when Cuddy was in one of her moods. She got puffed quicker.

"You skipped clinic duty yesterday."

House left the office, Cuddy in tow.

"I looked and didn't see any patients. So I figure 'Hey, free day-'"

"Don't give me that." she snapped. "You knew we had to move them to a new room because of the painters." House looked at her, face full of innocent surprise.

"Really? Gosh, news just doesn't get around like it used to." He watched with slight amusement as she went an interesting shade of purple. She'd been on a very short fuse lately. At the behest of Vogler, workmen were all around the hospital repairing and repainting; the chemicals gave her allergies. Her eyes were bloodshot; the tip of her nose bright red. He'd made a gentle rib at her appearance the week before. Which was why he was doing triple clinic duty this week.

Or at least, supposed to be doing.

Cuddy was apparently so annoyed she couldn't speak, as they managed to make it to the elevator without her speaking. House jabbed the down button.

"Look," she said at last through gritted teeth "You've got no special cases on, so there is no excuse. If I find you skiving off again I'll-"

"What? Spank me?"

"House, your job is on the line as it is. Don't give Vogler another excuse to fire you." she gave him a final warning look and stalked off. The lift pinged, door sliding gently open.

"Well, someone's grumpy." he said to himself as he stepped in. The woman in the lift scooted discreetly away from him.

* * *

The ducklings were lounging in the lab when he limped through the door. Chase barely looked up from his paper, before turning to the sports section. Cameron's eyes were carefully blank as she glanced up from her computer. House tried not to meet her gaze, though every day it was getting harder not to. He didn't want to know what he might see in them. After her comment a couple of week ago about 'his feelings' for her, he wasn't going to encourage her. 

At least, that's what he told himself.

Foreman was on the couch, looking as though he sleeping. House sat down on a chair. For a moment he took in the cold silence.

"SO!"

Foreman sat up so fast he fell off the couch. Cameron and Chase were slightly more dignified with their shock, even if Chase did rip a large chunk out of the paper.

"Any new cases?" he said, voice now at a normal level. He twirled his cane round a hand, taking in the stony silence. He looked at Chase, deciding to play dumb.

"Something wrong?"

"You still haven't told us who got fired." House glanced at Cameron, centering on a freckle just above her eye.

"By Golly, you're right." He stood up, heading for the door. He was halfway up the hallway before they caught up.

"Yes Children?"

"Well?" insisted Cameron. House accidentally looked her in the eye. Bad idea. Cameron's emotions were always right there for anyone to see, glowing like neon signs. The instant House looked at her he could see everything she was feeling, piling up behind her eyelids.

Great. Guilt Trip.

House sighed.

"No-one. I gave him my choice and he didn't accept it." Chase's gaze flickered slightly, confirming what House already knew. He was a Mole.

"So, if I don't choose anybody else, its the entire department." he let this sink in. There were lots of things he could have said after that. 'I'm sorry' for instance; but that would have been lying. He was too pissed at Vogler's power plays to be sorry; besides, it wasn't his fault. So instead he let it hang, heading back along the corridor.

He had a patient to find.

* * *

The three doctors went back into the room, in various stages of shock, each suspicious of the other. Cameron started flicking through cupboards as Chase sank back into his chair. Although he picked up the newspaper, he had no intention of reading it. He'd seen that look in Houses eyes; he knew about the deal with Vogler. He wasn't actually surprised. House always seemed to know what they were thinking. But even if he did, what could he do about it? He'd tried to sack him, and failed; he was safe. 

Chase wasn't exactly ashamed of what he'd done. After all, what was the point of being loyal to House if he was going to go down anyway? It might not be Vogler, but one day the old man was going to insult one patient to many. Better to save his own hide first.

Foreman looked up from the couch in irritation as Cameron began rummaging through the lower cabinet.

"What are you looking for?"

"Aspirin." came the muffled reply.

"There's some in the supply room." Chase flipped over a page, not looking up. If Cameron felt their eyes on her back as she left, she made no sign of it. It looked as the bun fight to keep their jobs was back in business.

* * *

House was flicking through the current files. The receptionist was typing on the computer, but House could feel her glaring out of the corners of his beady eyes. She knew what he was doing wasn't right, but wasn't willing to get in his firing line. If this was infamy, he sure wasn't going to complain. 

"Ahhh." he said softly, pulling out a file. His eyes scanned over it, and a tiny smile appeared on his lips.

Excellent.

_

* * *

Hee hee! Sorry, not much Romance/Angst between house/Cameron yet. But its time will come. Bwahahahah!_


	2. Chapter 2

_Thank you reviewers! And everyone who visited as well (hugs all)_

* * *

"Ahh….is that your file?" 

House raised an eyebrow at Wilson, but kept walking. Such a stupid question wasn't deserving of an answer, and they both knew it.

"Fine. Let me be more specific. Does that file belong to a patient of yours?"

"Not currently, but who knows? Tomorrows and whole knew day."

"Greg…."

"Oh, you're calling me Greg now? Something serious must be up." House paused, wincing slightly. The knife of pain that seemed to live in his leg sunk a little deeper. Wilson looked troubled as House took the Vicodin bottle from his pocket.

"You know how Vogler said he was going to get rid of the whole department if you didn't pick someone?"

House tipped his head back and dry swallowed the pills. It was a little like eating candy, when you thought about it. Same rush, same pleasurable tingling. "You're point being?"

"He's serious. I heard him talking to Cuddy about how much it would cost to hire a new batch of Doctors. Plus stealing someone's patient is probably not going to get you on his good side."

House rolled the pill bottle around his hand, feeling a rare flicker of pity. Cuddy must be in a terrible position. Protect the people she worked with, or please the patron. Though she'd be more then happy to let the door hit House on the butt on the way out, it was a different story for the other three. Combined, they were too valuable to loose.

Wilson still looked uneasy.

"So I'll get rid of one of them" said House with a shrug. "After this patient."  
Wilson had a feeling that House was planning on doing no such thing.

"That's still not your patient." he said in way of protest.

House smiled.

"It is now."

* * *

Cameron rubbed her head, grimacing. The Aspirin had done little to dull the ache inside her skull. The smell of paint wasn't helping any either,the smelllingering even inside the lab. Shaking it off, she looked again at the screen. 

**Application for Transfer.**

Her hands hovered hesitantly above the keyboard. Should she? After all, it would make her job a hell of a lot easier. Working with a man like House was a strain, emotionally and professionally. As a supervisor he was, well….a jerk.

And that was putting it nicely.

Unbidden, the memories of the conversation in his office crept into her mind. Shame burned on her cheeks. How could she have said that! She wanted to bang her head against the screen for being such an idiot. House didn't have feelings like that for anyone, let alone her. Though she supposed it was decent of him that he had told her outright what he thought. A lot of men could have easily taken advantage of such a crush.

No. It wasn't decency. He just did what he knew was right, not caring if he had to break the rules to do it.

Not decent. But right.

She was typing in her details when Chase walked in. Discreetly she minimised the file, turning to a webpage on Leukaemia. She watched him out of the corner of her eye. Things still weren't right between them. It would be easy to apologise….her pride stopped her. He was as much in the wrong as her.

He slammed the cabinet and walked out. He hadn't glanced at her once.

Hammer blows began to knock in her head.

* * *

"We have a forty-five year old male with-" 

"Where did you get this patient?" Chases eyes were narrowed in suspicion.

"I found him on the way to work. He looked so cute I just had to take him in." said House sarcastically. "Now-"

"So we didn't get referred this patient"  
House rolled his eyes heavenward.

"Yes we did. It was Dr Lanver."

"We don't have a-"

"Does it matter? Started with L. Now-" he rapped the board with his cane. "Mr Waterhouse. Has a history of bowel problems. Came in a week ago with terrible cramps to the abdomen. Still here because Dr Lanver can't figure it out. Any ideas?"

"Bowel Cancer." As always, Chase was first of the mark.

"Nope. Dr L did an Angiogram of the intestines. Nothing but crap."

Then something very strange happened.

Cameron giggled.

House blinked, thinking he'd finally lost it. He gave his head a little shake.

Nope. Still laughing. Cameron looked as surprised as the rest of them, hastily trying to turn them into coughs. Chase and Foreman stared at her like she'd grown an extra foot.

Cameron bit the inside of her cheek till it bled, but she couldn't stop the hysterical sounds bubbling passed her lips. Horrified at herself, she tried desperately to cram them down. Get a grip! She hissed inwardly. It did no good.

In the end she had to leave the room.

In the stunned silence she left behind, House turned to the other two.

"Is she drunk?"

* * *

Cameron was sitting on the floor of the toilet stall. Head in her hands, she took a deep breath, then two. She still felt giddy, though that might be something to do with the paint. The floor still felt sticky with it, and the stink was stifling. God, was the smell everywhere? 

Cameron couldn't believe it. She couldn't remember the last time she'd lost control like that. Now everyone would think she was barely holding it together. Furious with herself, she glared angrily at her hands.

They were probably right.

This thing she had with House, whatever it was, was tearing her up. The stupid emotions she'd been trying to ignore had kept coming back. So she'd given in and tried to do something about it. Everything had gone wrong. House avoided her and acted like she didn't exist half the time.

No wonder she went hysterical.

It would be a relief to transfer out of there. Then she could put the whole thing behind her. Especially House.

Her headache had come back. Wearily, she took out the bottle of aspirin and dry swallowed just like her boss.

* * *

_Things really began to heat up in the next chapter. You'll never guess ; )_


	3. Chapter 3

House was slumped in his chair, gazing down at his gameboy. Anyone watching could have sworn that all his attention was focused on the spaceship that flitted across the screen. They would, of course, have been wrong. The gameboy was less of an entertainment and more of a cover. He thought best when his hands were doing something. 

Right now he was thinking about Cameron.

Her laughing fit had disturbed him more than his face would let him show. Worried him, too. It was less of the fact she'd had it, then the sound.

_She giggled, _he thought with disgust.

She just wasn't the schoolgirl giggle type. Hell, Chase was more likely to start giggling then she was. Cameron usually had more self control. Had the passed few weeks been that stressful to her?  
The thought was troubling.  
He glanced up as she passed his office on the way to the lab. She met his gaze then looked away quickly, cheeks reddening. A slight frown passed over House's face. He would have to follow this closely.

"Have you seen Dr House? I heard he was looking after a patient, but he isn't in the exam room..."

Vogler's voice echoed down the hall. House listened intently as there was a muffled reply. Then came the soft thud of footsteps as they came towards his door. Throwing caution to the winds, House did something he realised in hindsight was probably very stupid.

He dived behind his desk

Hidden from view, House swore quietly to himself as an agonising jolt shot up his damaged leg.

There was a slight creak as the door slid open.

Vogler walked two steps in, then stopped. House was silent, quietly fuming. Vogler had just walked into empty office! Granted, it wasn't exactly empty, but still. Did the man have no understanding of the word 'privacy'? A pair of shoes scuffled forward, and Vogler picked the gameboy off his desk. It beeped.

Oops.

Someone else came in.  
"Oh. Uh... Mr. Vogler?" It was Wilson. There was a long silence. "Do you know where Dr House is?"

Vogler dropped the Gameboy onto the desk. "No, I was just looking for him. The cripple's slacking off as usual. Thought he might be hiding in here." Wilson gave a little nervous cough, glancing at the desk. He could see the edge of a walking stick poking out.

"Well, uh, It doesn't look like he's here."  
Vogler grunted. "Tell him when you see him I'm still waiting for his answer."  
He walked out, slamming the door behind him. Wilson peered over the top of the desk and down at House.

"Playing hide and seek by any chance?" House scowled up at his smirking face.

"Stop grinning like an idiot and help me up."

* * *

By the time Cameron got back to the room, they had come up with a diagnosis. Irregularities on the sides of the intestines cause by arteries swollen by fat.

Chase's idea, of course.

She kept her head down, not willing to meet Foreman's eyes. To his credit, Foreman didn't mention the reason for her brief absence, simply telling her that she was needed in the MRI room.

Chase was already there. He looked up, and a tiny smirk played at the edges of his lips. Cameron looked away and sat down in front of the monitor.

The heavy silence of the scan room played on her nerves, making her tense. She could feel him watching her out of the corner of his eye.

"So..."

"What?" she said irritably, keeping her eyes firmly on the appearing scan.  
"Feeling better?" She glared at him. The corner of his mouth twitched.  
"What's that supposed to mean?"  
"Nothing." he said, eyes innocent. "You just seemed a little-"  
"I'm fine." she turned her head back to the screen, staring at the folds of the intestines. Chase considered pushing it further, then let it go. Standing, he peered over her shoulder at the image.

"There doesn't seem to be any irregularities." she said, shifting uncomfortably. She could feel his breath on her neck.

"Me neither. I'll go tell House."

As he left, Cameron felt an unpleasant lurch in her stomach. The little room seemed to have gotten very hot. Trying to shake it off, she pulled down the microphone that connected with the scan room.

"We've nearly finished, Mr. Waterhouse. Just a few more-" she was answered with a rumbling snore. He'd fallen asleep.

Sweat ran down her neck as she finished of the MRI. When she at last stood, her head suddenly spun. Staggering, she grabbed the edge of the counter.

Stars gathered at the edge of her peripheral vision as she swayed. It slowly passed, though the fear it brought didn't.

What was wrong with her?

* * *

They were in the diagnostics office. Back at the drawing board, so to speak. House looked at them expectantly, though he couldn't quite disguise the boredom in his eyes. This case was mundane, compared to the others he usually dealt with. There was no challenge. Chase leant forward, rubbing his head. 

"Tapeworm?" he said half-heartedly. Foreman shook his head.

"Would have shown up on the MRI"

"Not necessarily. It was pretty full down there. If it was small enough, maybe we couldn't see it."

"If it was that small, the symptoms wouldn't be so bad."

Chase shrugged. "It's worth a shot. We've got nothing better." He looked at House, who returned a bored look.

"Run the tests." his gaze flicked to Cameron. "Anything you'd like to add?"

Cameron hadn't being paying attention, gazing distractedly out a window. Her mind was elsewhere, thinking nervously about the reasons for her sudden dizzyness.

She gave a little jolt, and looked rather guiltily at the board. She blinked, staring at it. The silence lengthened.

She couldn't read the words.

It wasn't that she didn't know what the letters meant. But they were blurred together, fuzzy like TV on bad reception. She could make out an I...or a L...

"Cameron?"

"That...that sounds fine." she stammered, staring at the words with growing panic. Her sight blurred further.

The other two got up to leave. House gave a little frown, looking at her closely. She was looking pale, squinting hard at the board like she needed glasses. He was about to say something when she noticed him staring. She scampered out before he could even open his mouth.

* * *

"Okay Mr. Waterhouse, we're just going to flush out your bowels. It's just to check for-" 

"Will it hurt?" Mr. Waterhouse, who looked like a giant sweaty beach ball with limbs, shifted uncomfortably on the bed.

"Believe me, it will hurt us more than it'll hurt you." muttered Chase under his breath. Foreman threw him a warning look, but fortunately Mr. Waterhouse didn't catch the insult. They were hooking up a drip filled with Gutetrine. A laxative that took less than ten minutes to flush out the bowels.

Not pleasant. But there were far worse alternatives.

Chase connected the tubes together, twisting the knobs to the correct level. Foreman took the mans pudgy hand, wiping it was a damp cotton bud. Cameron came in, handing the needle over to Foreman.

"This might sting a little." he said to the man, pressing the needle into skin. The man barely flinched. _Probably can't feel it through all that fat _thought Chase disgustedly to himself. The man on the bed shifted suddenly, staring hard at Cameron.

"Is she alright?"

She was holding onto the metal bar on the side of the bed with a white knuckled hand. Her face was white tinged with green, pupils shrunk to pinpricks.

"Cameron?" Chase moved forward, but she was already moving. She tore out of the room.

* * *

She made it. Barely. 

The nausea had been building up slowly since the dizzy spell. Barely fifteen minutes had passed, and nowCameron was bent over a toilet bowl, feeling everything she'd ever eaten surge up her throat. She coughed painfullyas stomach acid burned her throat.

Finally she sat back against the wall of the stall, wiping her streaming eyes.

Even afterwards, nausea still beat at the walls of her stomach. She rubbed her eyes. There was an unsettling fear in her stomach, that there was something seriously wrong with her. Medical brain clicking into focus, it began to spit out the things that matched her symptoms. Beginning stages of Leukemia, Harkin's disease...

With a sigh she stood up. That was one of the problems with being a doctor. Too much knowledge, so that every headache became the onset of brain cancer. It was probably just a stomach bug.

Nothing to worry about.

She flushed the toilet and opened the door, nearly running into the person standing outside.

"Sor..." the words died in her mouth.

It was House.

"Finally. You were taking for ever in there."

Cameron just gaped at him. What the hell was he doing in the woman's bathroom?

_Duh, looking for you _said a part of her mind she usually tried to ignore, the part that still clung to the thought that House might actuallylike her. Pushing it away, she glared at House. He' folowed her in here, with his usual total disregard for privacy.Annoyed beyond words, she pushed passed him and went to the sink, washing her hands.

"Hey, you get nicer doors then us." he commented. He wasn't looking at the doors though, staring instead at her with a piercing gaze. He was waiting for her reaction. Cameron sighed, knowing she would regret it as she opened her mouth.

"Why are you here?"

"I was worried about you. Plus I've always wondered what it was like in the little girls room." he looked around in feigned interest. Cameron wiped her mouth on the back of her sleeve, still tasting the bile. Her throat and mouth still burned with it.

"I'm fine. It's a stomach bug."

"Either that, or Bulimia isn't working out for you."

She glared at him. His face was blurred, even though he was barely a metre away. "I'm not bulimic." He snorted

"Right, like you can keep an arse like that sitting in front of a computer all day." She walked away from the sink and stood right in front of him, staring him right in the eye. House looked down at her calmly.

"What do you want, House? There has to be a reason you're trying to piss me off."

"I'm just was wondering if there was a reason you went hysterical in the office. Either a little too much wine, or something's up."

"Like you'd care." she spat. Cameron turned and headed for the door.

"I'm sending you home."

She stopped, then faced him. She looked as angry as he'd ever seen her.

"Fine." Cameron turned her back and walked away. Hidden from his view, she let a small flicker of relief into her eyes. She knew she wouldn't have lasted the day.

* * *

Chase watched as Cameron stormed into the office and walked to her desk. She started to shove things savagely into her purse. 

"Going somewhere?"

"Home. House thinks I'm too sick to keep working." Cameron was annoyed, probably more than she should have been. She understood House's reasoning. But something about the whole situation made her want to kick something. She was sick of his games, sick of the way he could get her mad so easily.

Sick of him.

Turning to leave, she accidentally walked into her desk. Papers and pens flew onto the floor. With a sigh of annoyance she bent to pick them up. Chase got up to help.

"You know, he might have a point. You don't look well."

"Don't you start." she snapped.

It was like her fingers were covered in butter. She reached out for a pencil and just seemed to miss. They would slip from under her fingers and roll further. Chase noticed.

"Let me. You just sit." Grudgingly she did. She felt stupid sitting there while Chase went after the stuff on the floor. The feeling quickly went away as a wave of dizziness hit her. Bending over, she put her head in her hands. The ground wobbled like it was the deck of a boat.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, just..." nausea roiled. Chased watched in growing alarm as sweat beads glittered on her face. Her hands were shaking. Startled, he put the pencils on the table, putting a hand on her forehead.

Instead of theburning he expected, her skin was like ice.

"How long have you felt like this?" he asked, shocked.

"I had a headache this morning." she mumbled. Her breathing was shallow. Chase felt her pulse. It skipped under his hands. Whatever this was, it was advancing very rapidly.

"Listen, I'm calling you a cab. I don't think you're going to be able to drive home." She said nothing, still holding her head. He got up and went for a phone.

The world was still spinning with a nauseating wobble. Eyes closed, she tried to take deep breaths. Every one seemed to burn her throat. Chills were sweeping up and down her arms.

_One hell of a stomach bug_ she thought numbly. There was a slight squeak as the door opened.

"You still here?" she didn't bother to look up. The click of a cane came towards her.

"One hell of a stomach bug." House commented, echoing her thoughts. "You should be at home. Now. As in leaving-"

"Chase is calling me a cab." Though she didn't see it, House's eyes narrowed.

"I see." Helooked up as Chase came in.

"Cab will be here in about 5 minutes."

"Thanks." Cameron stood, picking up her bag.

"I'll walk you down-"

"What, she's so sick she can't find her way to the front door?" interrupted House, cocking an eyebrow at Chase. "Foreman's just making sure Mr. Waterhouse's bowels are empty. He'll probably need your help."  
Chase glowered at House, who gave him a bright smile and motioned him to leave.

Cameron had already gone, walking down the halls as the world continued to spin.

* * *

Wilson was trying to explain to a pissed-off Dr Lambert why he was missing a patient. It wasn't going well. 

"Dr. House thought it was worth investigating-"

"Investigating? _I_ was investigating it!" snarled Dr Lambert, eyes popping with rage. Wilson wiped a droplet of spittle of his cheek, wondering why he kept covering for House. No matter how many times he did it, he could never work out why.

"That man has no respect for anyone inside this hospital! Oh, I can't wait till Vogler finally gives him the boot, I really can't..." he stomped down the hallway, muttering furiously to himself. Wilson shook his head, walking back towards his office.

There was a sharp crybehind him,as though someone had been kicked in the ribs. The sound made his teeth stand on edge.

He looked quickly in time to see a woman crumple to the floor, like a marionette with the strings cut.

He was the closest of the hospital staff, and the first to kneel beside the limp form. He rolled the woman over.

The world seemed to freeze as he looked down into Cameron's white face.

Her body was stiff and rigid like she was dead. Wide, blank eyes stared at the ceiling. Her lips were tinged blue.

Wilsonfelt for a pulse, praying. He felt frantic heartbeats beneath his fingers. A nurse came rushing up.

"Get a bed, quick-" he stopped suddenly. There was a twitch under his fingers. He recoiled as her body began to quiver. The pieces clicked into place, revealing a horrifying picture.

"She's about to have a seizure!"

The nurse shouted out for help as Dr Cameron's body began to tremble.

* * *

_Looooong chapter._


	4. Chapter 4

Wilson tore off his lab coat, balling it up and shoving it rapidly under Cameron's head. Her teeth were clenched tight as her muscles went haywire.

"Where's the Entrophine!" he shouted frantically. He fought the urge to hold Cameron's quivering limbs down. His medical training toldhim it wouldhurt her further, but it could barely hold against his the instinctive urge to stop the horrible spasms.

"I can't find it!" the panicked nurse was by the counter hauling out drawer after drawer. There was nothing!

It was too late by then.

Cameron convulsed violently, muscles clenching and unclenching rapidly so her body jerked like she was possessed. Wilson wasn't quick enough leaping back. An elbow collided with his ankle, with such force he nearly fell.

More force than Cameron could have had in her normal state.

Two nurses rushed forward, but there was little they could do until the seizure stopped. Wilson watched with a horrified chill as bloody foam frothed through her blue-tinged lips.

_You should be doing something! _his insides screeched.

_What am I supposed to do?_was the snapped reply.

Unfortunately, the seizure was right near a waiting room. Patients, drawn by the commotion, crowded around to watch with fascinated horror.

"Please, can you move back-" Wilson tried to shoo them away, but they ignored him. He was never that good at holding command at the best of times, let alone when there was a spectacle such as this.

"Why aren't you holding her down?"

"Look, can you just-"

"Hey, that's one of the doctors!" said a man suddenly.

"Who's a doctor?" the commotion had drawn Cuddy like a magnet. Relief made Wilson's knees weak.  
No one could scare people away like Cuddy.

She saw Cameron jerking on the ground and acted instantly.

"All of you, back down there." she snapped at the crowd. They hesitated.

"MOVE IT!" the sight of an enraged Cuddy sent them scarpering.

Her head snapped to Wilson. "What happened?"

"I don't know. She just collapsed."

"Did you inject Entrophine?" Entrophine was a medicine commonly used for epileptics. A muscle relaxant, it made the seizure less severe. Wilson shook his head, full of frustrated helplessness..

"There was no time."

Cuddy glanced down at Cameron, and Wilson saw the concern in her eyes.  
She knew the terrible significance of a seizure.

"She's stopping." said one of the nurses, quickly kneeling down. Wilson joined her as Cuddy reached for a phone.

The horrible jerks were fading to quivering twitches. The seizure couldn't have lasted more than a minute, but decades had passed since the chilling cry that signaled her fall. Gently as he could, Wilson rolled her onto her side.

Cameron was unconscious. A bloody snake slid from the corner of her mouth, pooling on the floor. She must have bitten her tongue. Wilson checked her vitals. A weak pulse, fluttering delicately under her skin.

"We need a stretcher on the second floor." Cuddy said tersely into the phone. She scowled suddenly.

"I don't care. Just get it here." She slammed down the phone. Her teeth bit her lower lip as she watched Wilson and the nurse loosening Cameron's shirt.

This meant so many things. She'd seen Cameron this morning, even if it had been just a glance. The doctor had been fine. Now...

_What if she caught it at the hospital?_ she thought with a chill. How many others could be infected? So many people moved through the hospital, many of them sick. How many had Cameron been near? A thing like this could be a disaster.

She needed this to be worked out, and quickly. Fortunatly, she had one of the countries best diagnosticians sitting upstairs playing a Gameboy.

"Stay with her." she said softly to Wilson. "I'll go inform Dr. House."

* * *

House was tapped his cane against his foot, staring at the whiteboard. Thought he wasnot really seeing it. Handin his pocket, he fingered the smooth cool edge of a coin. At last he got it out. 

Heads, Cameron. Tails, Foreman.

Yet still he hesitated.

They deserved better than a simple flick of a coin to decide their futures. Deep in his mind, House knew that if he flicked the coin, it would somehow negate the responsibility he had, any guilt he would feel.It was chance, not his fault.  
Unfortunately, it was just a little too deep for his conscience to feel.

He flicked the coin.

It bounced, rolling off the desk and onto the floor. He stood to look, but saw Cuddy come quickly down the hall towards his office.

The expression on her face told him something was very, very wrong.

* * *

House watched as they lifted Cameron onto a stretcher. A sort of numbness crept down his limbs as he looked at her face. She was so pale... 

_You caused this_, snarled a voice suddenly in his head.

_No_.

_You should have let Chase walk her down. Now look at her! _The voice accused. But what could Chase have done? Caught her on the way down? Nobody could have done anything.

It was too late now.

An oxygen mask was strapped over her face by a nurse. It fogged up as her breath touched it. The two men handling the stretcher began to push her away. Wilson stood beside him, looking like House felt.

"They're taking her down to general wards." he said finally. "Doctor Lambert's going to-"

"No, he's not." said House quietly.

Wilson stopped with a sudden feeling of foreboding. He looked quickly at House. Pale-faced, he stared after Cameron with...guilt? The look vanished in an instant, replaced by something Wilson dreaded. Cold determination.

"You're going to move her to Diagnostics aren't you?"

House didn't answer.

"House, you already have a patient!"

But House wasn't listening. He was already walking towardsthe lift, face grim.

* * *

He took the lift up to the room with Mr. Waterhouse. Foreman was inside, but House wasn't particularly interested in what he was doing. He stuck his head in. 

"Feeling better?" the man looked at him, slightly puzzled.

"Yeah, I'm...wait, who are you?"

"I was your Doctor." House closed the door, walking towards his office. He heard the slam of a door behind him, then hurried footsteps.

"Hey!" Foreman looked annoyed, and rather suspicious . House watched him levelly.

"What do you mean 'was'?"

"He feels better when his bowels are empty? Its Colic. Give him a dose of-"

"No way." scoffed Foreman in disbelief. Colic was a routine diagnosis, one of the most commonly occurring bowel problems. "Someone would have picked it up before now."

"He hasn't had a CT scan, has he?"

"No. Dr. Lambert was about to do it when you stole the file, actually. And you still haven't answered my question."

"We're getting a new patient. Just get him out of there." something about the cold way House spoke made warning bells ring somewhere in Foreman's brain.

"New patient?" House was moving away, and the look on his face suggested he didn't want to talk anymore. Foreman frowned.

He didn't like this.

* * *

"I can't authorise this." 

They were outside theward that held the still unconscious Cameron. House tried not to look through the glass at her. Every time he did, a sick feeling crept into his stomach. Instead, House glowered at Cuddy.

"Why not?"

"Because you already have a patient in the ward."

"It's Colic. He's healed. He'll be out of here by Thursday."

"It took you this long to work out it was colic?" she said in disbelief.

"I was being thorough."

"No you weren't. You were using that poor man as an excuse to put off your decision for another week more. Cameron stays where she is." House didn't move, eyes flash-freezing to chips of blue slate. She sighed.

"Look, I know you want to look after her. But even if you didn't have someone already there, I wouldn't allow it. People tend to screw up more if they're close to the patient." she scowled suddenly.

"Besides, I already tried."

House looked surprised. "You did?"

"If it was something she contracted from the hospital, you'd be the quickest to find it. Even if it took a few stabs in the dark before you finally got it." she grimaced slightly.

"Vogler stopped me." she spat out the word like it was dirty.

House felt rage hit him like a punch in the stomach, leaving him breathless. The stupid idiot! This went far beyond their stupid rivalry. Most of the people in the hospital were not near ashealthy as Cameron. Catching it would be childs play.

The results would be catastrophic.

"How could you have let him do that?"

"You think I had a choice?" she said angrily, defensive. "He basically owns the hospital. Dr Lambert may not be as quick as you, though he is more...logical."

The words were there, the tone was right, buther eyes said different. House sensed that the decision had pissed Cuddy off as much as House. Cuddy didn't like to be bossed around, not even by a patron.

But, unlike her, House could do something about it.

With a click of his cane he left without a word, with only a glance at Cameron through the glass. The sight of her closed his decision.

* * *

Waterhouse was being wheeled out of the ward as Chase came up the corridor. He'd been hiding in the diagnostic lab, leaving Foreman to do the Colonoscopy. 

There were just some things he could live without seeing, and the insides of the obese man's digestive tract was definitely one of them.

As he saw what was happening he stopped, confused. By the pained expression on the mans face, he didn't look as though he was any better.

Foreman was standing at the door, looking perplexed.

"What the hell is happening?"

The black man shrugged. "House says we've got a new patient." Chase looked after the retreating trolley.

"Well, I can't say I'm sorry..." he stopped.

Foreman had gone pale.

"Jesus..." he whispered.

The new patient. Even with an oxygen mask over her face, Chase knew who it was. He stared, blood draining out of his face.

She hadn't even made it out of the hospital.

* * *

_AN- Sorry it took so long. Stupid School Cert next week (eep!), and its harder to write if people keep coming in to see if you're studying. I'll try to get the next chapter up soon._

_ps- for those of you wondering, I took away the prologue because it seemed a bit pointless._


	5. Chapter 5

_Thanks to everyone who has reviewed so far. And to Ritaann, who helpfully pointed out my bad spelling ). I will correct the spelling mistakes made in the earlier chapters._

* * *

Sitting alone in the diagnostics office, Foreman stared numbly into space. His mind was blank with shock. Late afternoon light from a February sun streamed through the windows, giving the office a surreal glow.  
Chase was with the nurses, settling Cameron into the ward. Foreman had left, being unable to help. Unable to face, too, what he knew was a terrifying possibility.

When he had left, Chase was talking anxiously to the nurses. Foreman didn't need to.  
He knew the victim of a seizure when he saw one.

Foreman knew Cameron had been taking aspirin for a headache. She'd had a laughing fit, distinctly out of character. And now she'd had a seizure, leaving her unconscious.

Headaches; personality changes; seizures. They added together to a nasty conclusion.

There was something wrong in her head.

Infection, Cancer; either option had the chance of liquefying her brain to pulp if they couldn't find it in time.

The door creaked open. Wilson stood at the door, face pale.

"So, you heard."

Foreman nodded once, insides curled into nothing. By the look on the oncologists face, they had both come to the same conclusion.

For a long time, they sat in silence.

"It might be in the early stages." said Wilson finally. "She only started to present symptoms today, after all." He sounded hopeful. With a job like his, Wilson needed to hope.

Foreman didn't have that luxury.

"Maybe." he said, without conviction. _But maybe not._

"Have you seen her yet?"

Foreman nodded. "They wheeled her into the ward about twenty minutes ago. Chase is still with her."

A look of confusion flitted across Wilson's face. "Wait...you mean the ward Waterhouse was in?"

"Yes..." It suddenly clicked. Foreman nearly rolled his eyes in disbelief. He couldn't believe House would be pulling a prank at a time like this. "She isn't supposed to be there, is she?"

Wilson didn't answer. Just raced for the door.

* * *

He found House coming out of the lift. 

"Are you insane!"

"If you go by general opinion in this hospital, probably. And that's not a very nice hello."

House looked pleased with himself. The shock of seeing Cameron in a hospital bed seemed to have worn off him slightly. Or addled his brain enough to doing something so stupid as this.

"Cuddy said you couldn't move her. She's going to castrate you."

"I had nothing to do with this. Dr Lambert transferred her of his own free will." They were at the work desk now. House started reshuffling the stacks of files, looking for a pad of paper. Wilson felt a clash of emotions. Cameron would be under the best care with Dr House.

"No offense, but Dr Lambert hates you. There's no way he would-"

"I appealed to his good side." he found a pad of paper. "Or more accurately, I gave him a fifty. Plus my parking space." he scribbled 'IUO- House ($50)' and stuck the note into Cuddy's pigeon hole.

"He wanted your car parking space?" he said, momentarily sidetracked.

"Yep. Guess he doesn't like the birds crapping on his Porsche." As he started past him, Wilson grabbed House by the arm. A pair of blue eyes met his, cold and blank with emotion.

Almost.

"Are you sure you know what you're doing?" asked Wilson.  
House pulled his arm calmly away and headed to the diagnostics office.

* * *

Cameron woke in pain. 

Though 'woke' was a bit of overstatement, really. More like a gradual ease into consciousness.

A dull, bone deep ache drew her from darkness. Through her muddled thoughts, Cameron wondered faintly if she had fallen asleep in the cab. She didn't seem to be moving though. Strange...

There was a taste of blood in her mouth, coppery and rancid. In reflex, she swallowed.

_Ahhh! _A white-hot knife of agony was rammed into her mouth, splitting her tongue in two.

_That_ woke her up. Her eyes snapped open as she coughed, pain choking her. Her hand went to her mouth, but hit plastic. She froze.

There was an oxygen mask clamped to her face. Humid air over-rich with oxygen swept painfully into her lungs.

The first touch of fear fell cold in her stomach. The pain was ebbing, but she wasn't interested anymore. Her eyes flicked around, taking it in. Her eyesight had gotten worse; everything was smeared like a watercolour. But she could tell where she was.  
It made no sense.

She was in a hospital bed. By the looks of it, the same room that had held Mr. Waterhouse hours ago. Unable to comprehend, she just stared.

_What...?_

Gingerly, she sat up, looking down. She was wearing a paper gown, a band wrapped around her wrist.

Everything _felt_ real. But it couldn't be.

Cameron could feel her heart beating anxiously against her ribcage. The air from the mask wasn't helping either, making her feel light-headed. She wanted to take it off, but her medical training stopped her. Looking around again, she spied a clipboard left on her beside table.

She fumbled forward, feeling like she was moving through water. Clumsily she grasped it and held it close to her face.

Her eyes were an inch from the paper as she struggled to read. A scrawl she recognised as Wilson's had scribbled hectically in the symptoms section.

'_Patient suffered Tonic Seizure in Hospital hall, (2:25pm). Duration- 85 seconds (approx.). In an unconscious state afterwards. Held for further observation. Cause- Unknown'._

Seizure?

"Cam!" A white blur came in. It revealed itself to be Chase.

She tried to speak, but the words came out muffled. Frustrated, she pulled the oxygen mask off. Fresh air hit her face.

"It's okay. You had a seizure." he pulled up a chair and sat beside her.

"It's okay I had a seizure?" she said almost angrily. She was scared, not surprisingly.

"No, I meant-"

"I know." she took a breath, trying to fight down panic. "I'm sorry." She looked at him again, almost desperately. She wished someone could just tell her it was all a joke, but her heart knew it was true. And her mind whispered that this wasn't going to end happily ever after.

Chase grasped her wrist in the pretense of taking her pulse, but Cameron knew he was offering her some form of comfort.

"Don't worry." he said softly. "House is looking after you. Whatever it is, he'll find it."

She looked up at him through blurry eyes, and hoped House wasn't going to have his usual track record of nearly killing the patient before he got it right.

* * *

House had an inner bet that it would take twenty minutes before word got to Cuddy what he had done. She beat him by nine. He hadn't even managed to make it back to the diagnostics office when she found him, nearly apoplectic with rage. 

"Did you have anything to do with this?" she snapped, shoving a patient transferal file in his face. He took it, pretending to read.

"Why do you always blame me for everything that happens?" he said, sounding hurt.

"Because I know you, House." she hissed.

"Go ask Dr. Lambert yourself. He transferred her. Besides, I'd thought you'd be pleased."

"Oh, right. Of course I'm pleased that you ordered a transfer of a patient that could loose my job as well as yours!"

House had finally had enough.

"Look," he said finally, turning to face her fully for the first time since the conversation started.  
"Who runs this hospital, you or Vogler?"  
She was silent. "He doesn't own you, or me. Not yet anyway. He can't stop you from running the hospital the way you want. Besides, you didn't know this was happening, right? He may be a moron, but he doesn't blame innocent people." _I hope, _he added silently. Cuddy tapped her fingers against the desk, thinking. Then she sighed, deflating like a balloon.

"Fine. Do what ever you have to. But if Vogler fires you, I won't be able to stand in his way." The words hung in the air like a knife as she walked away.

"Dr. House!" House glanced behind him. A nurse rushed up.  
"Dr. Chase needs you. Something's wrong with-" she didn't get to finish. House had already gone.

* * *

Foreman and Wilson were arriving just as he reached the door. They both looked anxious. 

"Do you know what this is about?" Wilson asked him. House didn't answer, heading through the door.

Chase glanced up as he entered, mouth set in a grim line. He had Cameron's head tilted back, shining a small eye torch into her eyes. Foreman and Wilson walked up behind him, shoes scuffling on the floor. At the sound Cameron's head jerked towards them. Her eyes flickered across them, but didn't focus.

House felt his throat close up as he stared into her scared, unseeing eyes.

She was blind.


	6. Chapter 6

_I'm sorry! I was suffering major writers block._

* * *

"There's nothing wrong with her eyes." 

Chase faced them in the diagnostics office, arms crossed over his chest. House was bouncing a ball on the ground, the continuous thudding making Chase's teeth stand on edge in irritation.

House caught the ball and snorted. "Right, of course. She's just pretending to be blind so you can make an idiot of yourself." Chase caught the insult in the last few words, and felt colour rise on his cheeks. But he stood resolute.

They had been forced away from the ward by Cuddy.She had stuck her head in and told them if they wanted to stay singing in bass clef they should get the hell out beforeVogler discovered what they had done.

Cameron was alone now, staring blankly in bewildered shock. Chase's eyes fell on her chair, sadly empty. It was strange how even though they were only missing one, the room seemed so much emptier.

"I'm just saying it's nothing to do with her eyes. The problem goes deeper."

"Right. It's something in her brain." Foreman agreed quietly. House put the ball on the table, heart heavy.

At Foreman's words, Chase had gone pale. "You mean brain cancer?" House smiled a little sadly. Figured Chase would refuse to see the obvious.

Foreman shook his head. "Not necessarily.More likelyan infection of the brain stem."

"Encephalitis." House nodded slowly. It was the most likely option.

Unfortunately, it caused a whole hoard of problems.

Encephalitis wasn't a disease itself, but a collection of viral and bacterial infections that attacked the fatty tissue around the brain stem. All together there were probably a thousand different strains that could be attacking Cameron's brainstem, anything from Herpes to hepatitis.  
The most common way to diagnose the right strain was to take a sample directly from the brainstem.

Which could only be reached through surgery.

"Actually, I think it might be cancer." Wilson spoke up. He had been silent throughout the entire conference.

"You would think that. You're an oncologist." Chase pointed out, with a tone that boarded on snide. He had sided with Foreman, and the option that left Cameron with most of her frontal lobe.

Wilson shook his head, seemingly reluctant to speak. "Its not that," he said, hesitant. "Encephalitis doesn't cause loss of sight unless its a strain of infection that affects the eyes, and Chase said there was nothing wrong with them. Cancer explains all her symptoms." he didn't look happy with his logic.

Diagnosing cancer for someone who he liked as a friend was more painful than he realised.

Foremanwas stubborn. "Acute Disseminated Encephalomyelitis then. ADE has a sudden onset, and can cause loss of sight in rare cases."

"Yeah, one in a million." Wilson's voice was flat. House stood up, and they fell silent. Emotionless blue eyes stared at the white board, dark with thought. They flicked over each of her symptoms as the brain behind them clicked into movement.

The otherswaited, tense.

"Take a lumber puncture, and test the spinal fluid for any bacterial or viral infections. Run blood tests of cancerous cells, and an MRI."

"MRI's can't tell the difference between cancer and infection." Foreman pointed out.

"No, but they can tell us where it is. Unless you want to go cutting randomly through her skull on the off chance you hit something?"

"And what if it's an infection?" Chase demanded.

House remained still, though the lines around his eyes seemed to deepen.

"Schedule surgery."

Wilson's eyes widened in shock. Chase gaped at House, lost for words.

"Brain surgery." Foreman repeated, with a little to shake of his head as though he was sure he'd heard wrong.

"Yes, I'm pretty sure that's what I said..."

"You want us to just open her up?" Chase said hotly, glaring at House. House shot him a look that Wilson was stunned to see looked like amusement.

Oh God. He had been hoping House wouldn't react like this...

"There are other ways." Foreman argued, looking mortified. "MRS scanners-"

"We don't have one at the hospital." said House calmly.

"There's one across at Royal Prince George Hospital. If we transfer her there-"

"In which time she could die." House looked irritated at the delay. "We don't have time for this. Infections don't just wait around, you know."

Foreman looked ready to argue, but a warning glance from Wilson made him sigh and leave the office. He hoped Wilson could talk House out of this lunacy. Chase followed, throwing back an unhappy glance.

"Greg..."

House collapsed into a chair and grabbed his Vicodin.

"What?" he eyed Wilson and sighed. "Oh great. You've got your therapy face on." he tossed back his head and swallowed.

"You don't have to do surgery."

"If I don't want to dicharge a patient with the IQ of a watermelon I do."

"There you are, you're doing it again!" House pretended to look confused. Wilson clenched his teeth in aggravation.

"It's not just a patient, its Cameron.You haven't called her by her name once." he sat back, almost despairing. House said nothing.

"If this was any other patient you would be thinking of another way to do this. You know how risky brain surgery is."

"And if this was any other patient we wouldn't be having this argument." House shot back, brows drawn together in a glower.

"You're trying to distance yourself, to decrease the risk of making a stupid decision."Wilson said forcefully. "And normally that would be fine. But not so much that you can just make a choice and not think about the consequences it could have!"

"So you're saying that I'm trying to save her by killing her." House said slowly, cocking his head to the side and pretending to think about it. "Well, that's an oxymoron if I ever heard one."

"Right, and you're the moron."

House cocked an eyebrow.

Wilson bit his lip, ashamed atthe outburst. He attempted to take a calming breath as House popped another Vicodin.

"Well, tell her what you're planning on doing." he said at last, voice quiet. "You owe her that at least."

House met his gaze, then looked away.

Wilson knew he had finally got through, a little at least.

"Fine." House muttered, heaving himself to his feet. Then he raised his chin and looked Wilson in the eye.

"But I'm not changing the surgery."

He left diagnostics office without a word.

* * *

Foreman watched as House limped down the corridor with a face of thunder. He caught Wilson as he came out the door. 

"Well?" Wilson shook his head.

"Still wants the surgery." he found it difficult to keep his voice level. Foreman clenched his jaw tightly as he stared at his boss's retreating back.

"He'd better know what he's doing." he muttered darkly.

* * *

Heat was prickling on her arms. Nervously Cameron scratched at it with her nails like it was an itch, coughing. 

But nothing had changed. She couldn't see a thing.

She was surprised at how much it affected her. She heard things but couldn't tell what they were; She didn't know what time it was, or even if it was still daytime. It was just blackness, total and absolute.

It scared her.

She wshed somone would come, even just a nurse. Anything than being alone in the darkness. Her chest was tight; it felt like someone was leaning on her ribs, slowly increasing the pressure. Each breath was a short, painful gasp.

Someone came into the room. Her heart squeezed painfully tight as she recognised the strange, three legged scuffle of House. She had not spoken to him since her seizure; even when he had been in the room before, he had been silent.

"House?" she said hesitantly

There was silence. It stretched so long she half thought she'd imagined the noise.

"Yep. It's me." He voice sounded strange,cold and halting. She wished she could see his face.

Again silence stretched.

"...what...do you know what I have?"

"Not yet. The preliminary blood tests were clean. Though it's probably something in your brain. Cancer, or infection."

She nodded jerkily. She'd expected as much, though hearing it from House made it terrifyingly real. A bitter chill made her shiver harder, though she tried to keep it hidden.

"We're going to take a lumber puncture, and run blood tests for cancerous cells as well as an MRI." he paused, and Cameron felt suddenly wary. He was hiding something.

"And?"

"If it's an infection, we might need to perform surgery to work out what type it is."

He watched her take in a deep, shuddering breath. Then another.

House wasn't made for comforting people. He was more interested in solving the puzzles then helping the people involved. Wilson had always teased him, saying he had the bedside manner of an undertaker.

It had never bothered him until now.

"I'm sorry." he said, though it was terribly inadequate.

She looked up and smiled a rather shaky smile. "You're doing the right thing." she said softly."I have faith in you."

He felt the knuckled on his left hand clench as he tightened the grip on his cane. There was a tight pain in his chest, though he didn't quite know where. Any reply he could have made was halted by Chase and Foreman. They'd come in to do the lumber puncture.

House retreated to the corner as they got the needle ready.

Cameron rolled onto her side. Instantly the weight on her chest felt like a ton of bricks. She closed her eyes, fighting to breathe as there was a tiny prick on her back.

"Try not to move." Foreman said. _I know, I've done this before_ she wanted to say, but an iron hand was tightening around her throat.

"I can't breathe." the words cracked and snapped. Chase shot Foreman an alarmed look.

"Nearly done." he said quickly, trying to draw out the fluid as quick as possible.

"Oh sh..." pain shot down her spine, but that wasn't what made her heart stop. She couldn't breathe. She couldn't breathe!

"Sit her up." House voice snapped, echoing from far away. Her heart was thumping loudly in her ears with panicky beats.

"But-"

"She's turned blue you morons! Get her up!"  
Cameron's mouth gaped as she struggled for breathe, lips tinged with blue.  
She was choking.


End file.
